Today, about 75% of Latin Americans reside in urban areas. This has not
always been the case. In Table 1, we show the changes in the urban percentage of the
population between 1950 and 1990. In 1950, less than 50% of the population lived in
urban areas.

A great deal of the population shift has been due to rural-to-urban migration.
Such shifts occurred for a variety of economic and social reasons: growing rural
populations, more jobs and better wages in the cities, easy transportation, support
networks, armed conflicts in the countryside, wars, and so on. The rapid, unplanned
growth of the urban population led to a host of problems, of which environmental problems
are perhaps the most visible. These include:

Inadequate water supply, in terms of the quantity and quality

Inadequate waste management, for both human excreta as well as garbage

These problems incur vast economic, social and health costs. For example,
in 1991, the cholera epidemic in Peru caused over 320,000 cases, 2,600 deaths and $1
billion in direct economic losses, when a smaller investment in water, sanitation,
sewerage treatment and food safety might have prevented the epidemic. Compared to a
cholera epidemic, environmental pollution may be less dramatic, but the consequences may
be more severe.

Some major Latin American cities (for example, Mexico City, Santiago and São
Paulo) are among the most polluted in the world. Size is not always the dominant
factor. Mexico City's problems are exacerbated by its location in a basin at high
altitude, where thermal inversions trap cold, stagnant air. Rio de Janeiro may
contain many automobile and industrial plants, but there are sea breezes to clear the air.
Table 2 shows some standard air quality measures.

Table 2. Air Quality in Major Latin American Cities

City

Sulfur
Dioxide

Suspended
Particulates

Airborne
Lead

Carbon
Monoxide

Nitrogen
Dioxide

Ozone

Mexico City

Serious

Serious

Above
guideline

Serious

Above
guideline

Serious

São Paulo

Low

Above
guideline

Low

Above
guideline

Above
guideline

Serious

(source: UNEP/WHO (1992), Urban Air Pollution in Megacities of the
World, Blackwell, Oxford)

What does the 'serious' classification in the above table mean? For
example, in the case of Mexico City, this meant the production of an estimated 451,000
metric tons of suspended particulate matter and 206,000 metric tons of sulfur dioxide in
1990. Suspended particular matter are smoke, soot, dust and liquid droplets from
combustion which are associated with a wide range of chronic respiratory diseases,
heart diseases and other ill heath conditions among humans. Sulfur dioxide emissions
lead to acid rains, which cause serious defoliation and other environmental damages.

What does the citizenry think about all this? For most people, the
presence and effects of environmental pollution are evident everywhere. The real
question is their level of concern. In the Los Medios y Mercados de
Latinoamérica study, we asked whether or not people agree with the
statement: "I am very concerned that pollution is affecting people's
health". It turned out that 82% of the people agreed with the statement.
In Table 3, we break down the answer by various geo-demographic subgroups.

Table 3. %Agree that Pollution is Affecting Health

Geo-demographic group

%Agree

Argentina

54

Brazil

90

Chile

65

Colombia

85

Mexico

78

Puerto Rico

89

Venezuela

89

Balance Central America

88

Balance South America

77

Male

81

Female

83

Age 12-17

89

Age 18-24

89

Age 25-34

85

Age 35-44

84

Age 45-54

82

Age 55-64

83

Education less than 6 yrs

86

Education 6 to 11 years

90

Education 12 or more years

85

Socio-economic Level A

81

Socio-economic Level B

83

Socio-economic Level C

82

Socio-economic Level D

82

There does not appear to be much difference by age, sex, education and
socio-economic level. In fact, the biggest differences are that Argentina and Chile
are lower than the other countries. Unfortunately, our study does not allow us to
determine the reason(s). Are these two countries actually less polluted? Do
the people in these countries perceive their countries to be less polluted? Are they
less aware of the effects? Or are they simply less concerned?

In as much as environmental pollution comes from multiple sources, the reduction
of the problem has to be tackled by governments, non-government organizations,
corporations and individuals alike. The largest single role has to be played by the
government, which must regulate and enforce anti-pollution measures. These are not
simple decisions, as there must be a balance struck between reducing environmental
pollution and disruption of commerce, and between conservative fiscal policies and
ambitious spending programs. Sometimes, even the best of intentions may lead to
contradictory results. For example, the Hoy no
circula program in Mexico City was intended to reduce traffic by
forbidding driving one day per week depending on the license number, but the program was
easily subverted and may have contributed to increased vehicle sales.

It would be nice for the private sector to act as responsible citizens and
spontaneously do their own share. Now, corporations are driven by the profit motive,
and one might suppose that their current modes of operation maximize short-term corporate
profits irrespective of any long-term costs to society at large. This might mean
that they would not be motivated to change anything.

In the Los Medios y Mercados de Latinoamérica study,
we asked whether or not the respondents agree with the statement: "I would pay more
for a product made by a company which respects and improves the environment".
Overall, 75% of the respondents agreed with this statement. In Table 4, we have
broken down the answer by geo-demographic subgroups. Again, there is not much
difference by age, sex, education and socio-economic level. Argentina appears to be
significantly lower than the other countries, but still more than half its people agreed
with the statement.

Table 4. %Agree to Pay for Environment-friendly Products

Geo-demographic group

%Agree

Argentina

52

Brazil

80

Chile

72

Colombia

71

Mexico

67

Puerto Rico

84

Venezuela

87

Balance Central America

84

Balance South America

71

Male

78

Female

72

Age 12-17

72

Age 18-24

75

Age 25-34

78

Age 35-44

77

Age 45-54

72

Age 55-64

69

Education less than 6 yrs

75

Education 6 to 11 years

74

Education 12 or more years

77

Socio-economic Level A

73

Socio-economic Level B

78

Socio-economic Level C

77

Socio-economic Level D

71

Corporations have the opportunity to make environment-friendly products without
necessarily sacrificing profits. They also have the responsibility to act as good
corporate citizens.